Safety ash tray



June 23, 1959 H. F. MACHON SAFETY ASH TRAY Filed Aug. 13. 1956 INVENT OR Hubert F Mac/ran United States Patent SAFETY ASH TRAY Hubert Franz Machon, Brampton, Ontario, Canada Application August 13, 1956, Serial No. 603,559 1 Claim. (Cl. 131-235) This invention relates generally to smoking equipment, and is more particularly concerned with a novel safety ,ash tray including means for holding ashes and used cigarettes, means for snuffing out lit cigarettes, and means for supporting a cigarette in a readily accessible position to subsequently be smoked.

A primary object of invention in conformance with that set forth is to provide a novel safety ash tray of the character involved which includes means for receiving butts of cigarettes, means for receiving the ashes from the cigarettes when smoked as well as including means for supporting a lit cigarette in a position to be smoked, and also including means wherein the portion by which the cigarette butt is snuffed may be rotated wherein a clean top is presented for subsequent snufling of additional cigarette butts.

These together with other objects and advantages which will subsequently become apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the novel safety ash tray;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the novel safety ash tray;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional View taken substantially on line 33 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially on line 4--4 of Figure 1, showing by means of dotted arrows the manner in which the support spindle of the ash tray may be rotated.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the novel safety ash tray is indicated generally at 10, said ash tray including a housing member 12 and a rotatable support spindle 14.

The housing member 12 is hollow and may be constructed of any suitable material, wood, plastic or the like, includes mutually parallel bottom and top walls 16 and 18, suitably connected to end walls 20 and 22, and arcuate side walls 24 and 26. The top wall 18 includes an elongated slotted portion 28 extending substantially the length thereof and rotatably receiving therein the elongated spindle assembly 14 which is rotatable about its longitudinal axis as will subsequently become apparent.

The spindle 14 may be constructed from any suitable material, and includes opposed flattened side portions 30 and 32, and extending through threaded bore portions 34 at the end of the spindle is the threaded end of a turning knob 36, the shaft portion thereof extending through a suitable aperture 38 in the end walls 20 and 22 of the housing member. The flattened portions 30 and 32 are substantially flush with the upper surface of the top wall 18 of the housing member. A blind bore portion 40 opens into one of the ends of the spindle member and has disposed therein a compression spring 42 engaged with a ball element 44 which may be received in upper and lower detents 46 and 48 2,891,558 Patented June 23, 1959 disposed above andbelow the threaded bore portion 34 which defines the axis of rotation of the support spindle 14. Thus rotation of the knobs 36 will cause rotation of the support spindle 14.

The support spindle 14 has extending transversely therethrough bore portions 50 and 52 providing means whereby cigarette ashes may be deposited within the interior 54 of the housing member. Opening through the flattened portions 30 and 32 of the support spindle 14 are blind bore snufiing portions 56 and 58 which receive the lit end of the butt of a cigarette therein, and when the support spindle 14 is rotated as previously mentioned, said lit butt which has previously been snuffed out, will be deposited within the housing member.

Suitably secured at opposite ends on the flattened portions of the support spindle 14 are arcuate plate elements 60 which receive thereon the intermediate portion of a lit cigarette, supporting the same in a position to be readily available for smoking.

The flattened side portions 30 and 32 when disposed flush with the upper surface of the top wall 18 provide a substantial area upon which lit cigarettes may be caught if they inadvertently fall from the arcuate plate elements 60. Additionally, the substantial flattened area mentioned above also facilitates the initial disposition of lit cigarettes thereon with the lit ends thereof overlying either the bore portions 50 and 52 or the blind bore portions 56 and 58. The ashes from the lit cigarettes thus may fall through the bore portions 50 and 52 or if received in the portions 56 or 58 will be disposed within the housing 12 when the spindle 14 is rotated about its longitudinal axis.

The foregoing is considered to be illustrative of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

An ashtray and support assembly comprising a hollow housing member including a planar top portion having an elongated slot therethrough, an elongated spindle journalled in said housing member and including diametrically opposed, parallel longitudinal planar surface portions substantially filling said elongated slot in said planar top portion and positionable substantially coplanar therewith for supporting a lit cigarette thereon, means operatively connected to said spindle for rotating the spindle about its longitudinal axis and for positioning said longitudinal planar surface portions in parallel relationship with the outer surface of said top portion, said planar portions combining to provide a surface upon which cigarettes may be supported, support means on said longitudinal planar surface portions of the spindle for supporting a cigarette in a readily accessible position intermediately of the planar portions of said housing and spindle, said spindle having snufling bore portions normal to said planar surface portions for receiving the lit end of a cigarette to facilitate extinguishing of the same and for receiving ashes from a lit cigarette supported on the planar portions, said spindle having transverse bore portions extending therethrough normal to said planar surface portions for passing ashes therethrough to be deposited into said housing member, and resilient detent means offset from the longitudinal axis of said spindle and extending between said housing member and spindle for retaining one of the planar surface portions of said spindle in a fixed position substantially fiush with the planar top portion of said housing and permitting the same to be rotated about its longitudinal axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,757,279 Weinberg May 6, 1930 1,874,319 Lill Aug. 30, 1932 2,606,562 Siegel Aug. 12, 1952 4L Manion Dec. 8, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS Italy July 21, 1937 Germany Oct. 25, 1937 France Jan. 7, 1953 

